Wednesday, April 8, 2009

SPROUTING BROCCOLI OR BROCCOLI RABE WITH CITRUS BUTTER

Yet again, Weiser Family Farms inspired me with their gorgeous Purple Sprouting Broccoli. It apparently takes 340 days to grow and because of that is just super good for you. I was warned that it has a “strong” taste, so I decided to treat it like I would Broccoli Rabe – that is, to steam it first slightly to take the edge off.

One of my favorite ways to have broccoli when I was a kid was with lemon butter (all made in the microwave, of course) so I adapted a recipe from Deborah Madison’s LOCAL FLAVORS, Roasted Asparagus with Citrus Butter, to use some of the blood oranges I’ve been accumulating from our CSA and pair it with the Sprouting Broccoli.

¾ lb. – 1 lb. sprouting broccoli or broccoli rabe, tough stem ends removed
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
2 Tablespoons olive oil or butter

¼ cup fresh citrus juice (blood orange or sweet Meyer lemons are recommended)
1 teaspoon citrus zest (ZEST BEFORE YOU JUICE!)
3 Tablespoons butter, chopped into chunks or at room temperature
salt and pepper

Steam the broccoli lightly – don’t fully cook, just let it brighten in color. Remove from heat and rinse with cold water to stop it from cooking further.

Cook garlic in butter or oil for a couple of minutes over low heat, until fragrant. Add broccoli and sauté over medium high heat for about 5 minutes, until the stems are just tender.

Meanwhile, boil the citrus juice in a small skillet, until it has reduced to about 1 – 2 Tablespoons. Remove from heat and immediately whisk in the butter. Once it is melted, add the zest and salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the sauce over the broccoli and serve immediately.

1 comment:

  1. Bella declared this was "very different but VERY delicious" and had a large second helping. Joaquin had to hold his nose to get it down, but that is his way with greens lately. I loved it.

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